runningstart | MASK OR MENACE IC INBOX

MASK OR MENACE IC INBOX

WALLY WEST
"You've reached the personal voice mail of the Wall-man. The honor is yours! Leave your deets, I'll holla back atcha."
[ BEEP. ]

KID FLASH
"This is the contact for Kid Flash. If it's an emergency, call Robin; he'll know where I am. Otherwise, leave your info and I'll get you back ASAP."
[ BEEP. ]

[ voice | text | email | action ]

( Please specify in tag subject line if the contact is for Wally West or Kid Flash! )

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

You know what? It is personal. It is one hundred percent, all-on-me personal. I'm clearly the only one who has an issue with what she did, so obviously I'm the problem. [wally you are kind of spiraling here buddy] But it's not a problem anymore, because she already made it pretty clear she doesn't care if I understand or not. So I'll keep things professional, don't you worry.

You've been hostile to her from the start! You are the only person who went out of their way to make her feel unwelcome! Why does she owe you, of all people, an explanation?

Because we were getting along! [Wally throws out his arms.] Bialya happened, and then she came back to save us when she could've ran and then I showed up here and she- she told me to be careful! And then we went to Six Flags and we were texting like normal people and she won a stupid stuffed thing and gave it to me, and I got her a stupid mug and wrote her name on it because the stupid gift shops never have her name on anything, and I checked everything!

[He drags his hands through his hair, bowing his head.] And then you disappeared, and she didn't- she listened to me, and we looked together and we went up against Shade and she stayed there even though he could've killed us, and I thought that maybe we'd be good, y'know? As friends! And I thought if we could do it here, we could be friends when we went back home too and then she tells me she did this in December?

When we were already friends?

[Wally drops his hands and gives Dick a look, and it's more despairing than it is angry now, because he just doesn't get it. Maybe it's the way he was raised for sixteen years by parents who encourage always telling the truth, or maybe it's because he was taught by Barry to value trust and teamwork and every person close to you. Maybe it's because he's lived a charmed life, hasn't really experienced a whole lot of rejection or disregard that came from anywhere but within. He's never experienced loss or real heartbreak

And maybe he likes her a little.]

I trusted her, so why didn't she trust me?

[...and that's the problem.]

[ And there it is. ]

... People act really stupid when they care about each other.

[ It's clipped and it's quiet and he swerves a little too sharply on his heel when he turns to go look out over the ledge again. He needs a second. Just one second.

He's so tired of navigating this thing between the two of them. What does he get out of it, if they make up? It's all for them. It's always been for them. They make up and they get more stupid trips Wally doesn't tell him about and more stupid texting and more stupid friendship and — he'd probably take her to the beach. Artemis wouldn't have gone with him if she could go with Wally. Why would she? Wally's open and honest and warm, and all the things that had gotten Dick to shed his mask, all that time ago. She doesn't even know his name.

God, Wally likes her so much that the intensity of it is actually painful. He hadn't been kidding around, when he'd told Artemis he was jealous of that. It's unfair and it's petty and he doesn't even want to know what they'd think if he told them the truth: that he doesn't know who he is if he's not someone's best, someone's favorite, someone's something. If anyone's selfish, if anyone's scared, it's him.

... He takes a breath. All right. He's team leader. Kaldur would— Kaldur would do the whole noble self-sacrifice thing. Kaldur's the best of them. Robin will never be, but he can try in his stead. Just a second, and he'll be okay.

When he turns back to Wally, his face is impassive. No anger, no terror, no envy. Of all the things that Batman ever taught him, he might be the most grateful for that. ]

Just because you trust someone doesn't mean you trust them to like you.

What is that even supposed to mean? [Wally pinches the bridge of his nose. And why is Robin getting so pissed off about this anyway? It's not like they've been on a mission and screwed up or anything, it's just-

Wally can stow his emotions for a mission, totally. He can do that.] Look, if this is you freaking out that I'm gonna like, not show up for role call or something, don't. I'll work with her fine. Everything else is just...baggage.

I'm not freaking out.

[ That's the lie of the century, right there. ]

You're my friend and it's my responsibility to tell you when you're being stupid. You like her. You took her to Six Flags and bought her presents, you were friends, and you wanted her to trust you so badly that whole thing is killing you. You're miserable and you're pretending like you're not, but I can tell. I've never seen you like this.

I hate it.

I don't like her, like her.

And it was just a mug. [nbd all right so drop it]

[ she's a pretty girl, of course you like her like her ]

So why'd you bring it up?

You brought it up, dude. [Wally folds his arms and leans back against the fence, which creaks. Old rickety piece of shit wood fence.]

You brought up the stupid mug. In your story.

[ He folds his arms and looks away and doesn't feel like leadership material at all. Not even that much like best friend material, right now. ]

No, you said it like I was buying her all these presents when all I got her was a stupid mug because she got me something first, so it's not like I was buying her tons of crap. [why is this even important enough to fight about]

And I'm not miserable! [he just doesn't go outside much anymore but that's totally because it's hot, and he doesn't go on patrol anymore unless robin asks him to go, and he just watches netflix all day but that's because he doesn't know any of the shows or movies in this place and he's just killing time and that's it] And if I am miserable, it's because I'm done being here in this stupid world and I want to go back home, that's it.

[ Dick gives Wally a long look, a look that says "you're lying and we both know it," and slumps down the fence to sit on the ground. He pulls his knees up to his chest. ]

Stop it. Just... stop acting like I'm supposed to be okay with how unhappy you are.

You're not really gonna lecture me on being unhappy, are you? Dude- [Wally pushes off the fence and stares down at Dick,] you were packing a runaway bag when I came in. Were you gonna take off without me? 'Cause that was kinda sounding like the plan.

... I called you. So I guess I wanted you to know. Or stop me. Or come along.

[ He scuffs his heel in the dirt. ]

I don't know which one.

Let me just put my opinion out there: don't run off at all. So, I guess I'm going with the 'stopping you' option.

You know I'd miss you, right?

That's super comforting. [FOLDING ARMS.]

[ flustered little pout ]

Shut up. I'm trying to be sincere here.

If you wanna go somewhere and be alone for a while then go, dude. If it's 100% necessary, for your piece of mind or nerves or whatever, for me to not be around when you leave then I'm not gonna stop you. Sometimes you do what you gotta do.

But I'm not gonna feel good about it, even if you mean it when you say you'll miss me. 'Cause that's assumed, that you'll miss me and I'll miss you, and thanks for the heads up but the last time you vanished I thought maybe the Shade had put you in some alternate dimension or something. So excuse me for not being happy with the prospect.

[ Dick's quiet for a long moment before he reaches up toward Wally, grabbing blindy for his hand or wrist or fingers or whatever to tug him down, too. ]

[Wally sits down easy, just whumpf right onto the ground and leans back against the fence.]

You're an idiot. [he doesn't mean it]

[ Their hands stay clasped for a moment too long, like they had been when Robin had gone plummeting into the heart of an alien mothership and Wally had launched himself right after him like all they had left was each other. When Dick lets go, he just slumps to the side until his shoulder's pressed up against Wally's. ]

Yeah, but you keep following me. What does that make you?

Obviously an even bigger idiot. [Wally sighs and thunks his head back against the fence post.]

[ a beat, as he glances down at the ground, one hand toying with a small rock. ]

I won't run anymore, okay? And I'll talk, if you want. Not when you're still my ride home, but... sometime. Live up to my own standards and everything.

Edited 2014-07-09 21:38 (UTC)

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